Suze McClellan, a part-time resident of Baja California Sur, shares a recipe for smoky, cheesy chiles rellenos from Cielito Lindo in Cardinal.
Ingredients
- 6 poblano peppers
- 3 large potatoes
- 10½ ounces goat cheese
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, crushed
- 5–6 large egg whites
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- Peanut oil
- ¾ cup–1 cup grated cheese (I love pepper jack)
- 3–4 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 small onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- ¼ cup beer or dry white wine
- 1 15.4-ounce can tomato sauce
- 1 cup of water
- 1–2 tablespoons butter (optional)
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
In a medium frying pan, over medium heat, sauté olive oil, onion and garlic for 3 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally until onions are translucent. Add beer or dry white wine and bring to a simmer for 30 seconds to burn off the alcohol. Stir in tomato sauce and water, return to a boil; lower heat and simmer for about 30 minutes. Season to taste and I like to add butter to finish the sauce.
Char peppers by placing them over an open flame, dry roasting, or broiling them. Turn often to blacken skin evenly, about 10 minutes. Allow the peppers to rest until they are cool enough to handle, 3 to 5 minutes. Place peppers in a large plastic bag and seal it to sweat off skins, about 10 minutes. Most of the charred skin should fall off easily, but rub off any excess with your hands or a paper towel. Set aside.
Peel and roughly dice potatoes to 1 inch cubes, boil in lightly salted water until tender, about 15 to 20 minutes; drain potatoes and place in a large bowl.
(Tip: I like to save the potato water for wild yeast sourdough bread.)
Add goat cheese, salt, pepper, cumin to the potatoes and mash with a potato masher.
In a separate bowl, whip egg whites and cream of tartar with an electric hand mixer until stiff peaks form, about 4 to 5 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350°.
To prepare peppers, first slice one side of the pepper to open, making sure to keep the stem intact.
Take a small handful of potato mixture, just enough to fill the inside of the pepper.
Lightly dredge the pepper in flour, shaking off excess.
With your hands, cover the pepper with egg white mixture. Repeat with remaining peppers.
Heat 1” oil in a medium frying pan over medium-high heat.
Carefully place 1 or 2 peppers in the oil and fry until you see a beautiful golden brown color around the edges, about 1 minute; gently turn peppers with tongs and brown the other side. Place on a paper towel-lined plate and fry remaining peppers.
Cover the bottom of an ovenproof casserole dish with a bit of red sauce. Place peppers in casserole dish, cover with more red sauce, and top with grated cheese.
Bake in the oven until sauce is sizzling and cheese is melted, about 25 minutes.
